Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Just The Facts: Hot Second Halves & The CAA Tournament

I never saw an episode of the original Dragnet and the movie was one of about three films released in 1987 that I've never seen, but that's not stopping me from making a Joe Friday reference!

For those of us who find digging into media guides and perusing online databases such as the new Sports-Reference.com college basketball site (the college hoops version of the greatest site ever, Baseball-Reference.com) the most fun we can have with our pants on, CAA Tournament week is a positively Sting-like experience. There’s so much to do and so much information to mine that it takes an almost superhuman willpower to make it all the way through!

Now that I’ve sufficiently disgusted you, welcome to the first of who knows many installments of Just The Facts. I’ll eschew the usual witty and rambling prose and present to you the raw data on a tournament topic relevant to the Flying Dutchmen.

Today we look at the previous CAA teams to do what the Dutchmen did this year: Lose one game or less (that would be none) in the second half of the conference schedule while winning at least nine of their final 10 regular season games. The Dutchmen are the 18th team to do this, and the third Hofstra squad, following in the footsteps of the 2004-05 and 2005-06 clubs.

History suggests the Dutchmen will win at least one game this weekend: Discounting the 2000-01 Richmond team that was ineligible to participate in the CAA tournament in its final year in the league, only one of the previous 17 teams lost in the first round of the tourney (Old Dominion to the Cinderella East Carolina squad in 1993).

Seven of the teams won the conference tournament and another three lost in the title game. Every team except ODU in 1993 got as far as the semifinals. Two of the teams to fall in the semis—Mason in 2006, if you squint enough you can see me twitching from wherever you are, and ODU in 2007—received at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament.

Anyway, don’t get me going on that. Here you go, have fun! More Just The Facts to come later today or tomorrow.

William & Mary 1982-83: Went 5-0 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to James Madison in title game

Navy 1985-86: Went 7-0 in second half of CAA season and 10-0 in final 10 games, won tournament and reached the Elite Eight

Navy 1986-87: Went 7-0 in second half of CAA season and 10-0 in final 10 games, won tournament

Richmond 1988-89: Went 6-1 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to UNCW in semifinals

George Mason 1988-89: Went 6-1 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, won tournament

Richmond 1990-91: Went 6-1 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, won tournament and reached Round of 32

Old Dominion 1992-93: Went 6-1 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to East Carolina in first round

VCU 1995-96: Went 7-1 in second half of CAA season and 9-1 in final 10 games, won tournament

UNCW 1997-98: Went 7-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to Richmond in title game

Richmond 2000-01: Went 7-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, ineligible for CAA tournament in final season in conference

UNCW 2002-03: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, won title

Hofstra 2004-05: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to ODU in semifinals

Hofstra 2005-06: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to UNCW in title game

UNCW 2005-06: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, won title game

George Mason 2005-06: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to Hofstra in semis, made NCAA Tournament anyway thanks to friends in low places and reached the Final Four (DAMNIT!!!!)

Old Dominion 2006-07: Went 9-0 in second half and 10-0 in final 10 games, lost to Mason in semis, received at-large bid to NCAA Tournament and lost in first round

Old Dominion 2008-09: Went 8-1 in second half and 9-1 in final 10 games, lost to VCU in semis